NBA on TNT Just Ended Forever – What Happens to Basketball on TV Now?
It’s hard to believe, but after 35 seasons, the NBA is leaving TNT. The Pacers’ Game 6 Eastern Conference Finals victory over the Knicks was the final game in TNT history. Here’s how it all ended:
So what happens now? What will NBA telecasts look like when the 2025-26 season tips off?
Which Channels and Streamers Will Have the NBA Next Season?
The new NBA rights deal will run through the 2035-36 season. Here’s how it shakes out.
ABC and ESPN
ABC will have more than 20 games per season. They’ll usually air on Saturday nights and Sunday afternoons.
Up to 60 games will air on ESPN. You’ll usually see them on Wednesday and Friday nights.
ABC and ESPN will still air all 5 Christmas Day games.
Importantly, all NBA games from these Disney-owned channels will be available on the upcoming ESPN Streaming App. (Expect them on the $29.99/month Unlimited plan.)
NBA Playoffs on ABC and ESPN
ABC/ESPN will get about 18 games in the first two rounds of the playoffs.
ABC/ESPN will also get one of the two Conference Finals series in 10 of the next 11 seasons.
ABC will still be the exclusive home of the NBA Finals.
Streaming Services with ABC/ESPN
- DIRECTV
- Sling TV (select markets)
- Hulu + Live TV
- Fubo
- YouTube TV
NBC and Peacock
NBC and its streaming partner Peacock can distribute up to 100 NBA regular-season games per season.
NBC will air more than half of those games Sunday and Tuesday nights. On Tuesday nights, the Eastern and Central time zones get one game, Pacific and Mountain time zones get the other game.
Peacock will get a Monday night doubleheader each week. It will also host both Tuesday night NBC games.
NBCU (NBC/Peacock) will distribute up to 100 NBA regular-season games per season – with more than half of the games airing on NBC (on Sunday and Tuesday nights). NBCU will telecast the league’s opening night doubleheader on NBC each year and at least two games on MLK Day on NBC and/or Peacock each season.
NBC will become the home of NBA All-Star Weekend, including Rising Stars, All-Star Saturday Night (Slam Dunk, 3-Point Contest, and Skills Challenge), and the All-Star Game.
NBA Playoffs on NBC and Peacock
NBC/Peacock will get approximately 28 games in the first two rounds of the playoffs. At least half will be on NBC.
NBC gets one of the two Conference Finals in 6 of the 11 years, alternating with Prime Video.
Streaming Services with NBC
- DIRECTV
- Sling TV (select markets)
- Hulu + Live TV
- Fubo
- YouTube TV
Peacock is a standalone streaming service. If you get the ad-free plan, it includes your live, local NBC station.
$7.99/mo.
Prime Video
Amazon’s video streamer will have 66 NBA regular-season games including Thursday night doubleheaders beginning in January, Friday night doubleheaders, some Saturday afternoon games, and at least one Black Friday game.
Prime Video also streams important games from the NBA Cup: quarterfinals, semifinals, and the Championship Game.
NBA Playoffs on Prime Video
Prime Video gets all six NBA Play-In Tournament games.
It’s also hosting about one-third of the first and second rounds each year.
Prime Video gets one of the two Conference Finals series in six of the 11 years, alternating with NBC/Peacock.
$8.99/mo.
Will the NBA on TNT Personalities Still Be Around?
Yep. Ernie, Charles, Kenny, and Shaq will stick together and appear on ABC and/or ESPN. That means you’ll still see Gone Fishin’ and Charles’s thoughts on churros and the women of San Antonio.
What Will TNT Air in Place of the NBA?
That’s a great question. Reports suggest Warner Bros. Discovery CEO David Zaslav may try to dump the company’s cable channels to another buyer or spin them off into another company the way NBCUniversal did with Versant.
Warner Bros. Discovery has slashed its content budget, so we’d expect more reruns in place of basketball.
Could TNT Ever Get the NBA Back?
There’s always a chance TNT could break the bank to reacquire NBA games, but they won’t have a chance for 11 years (the length of the new media deal).
If you ask me what TNT will look like in 2036, there’s a chance it won’t even exist. Or it could become just another rerun zombie channel like MTV or Comedy Central. It’s mostly there already.
The smart bet is that the NBA never returns to TNT.
